A Hard Game to Play
by JackSam200
Summary: When Nikola turns up at the sanctuary, his research trashed by none other than Helen Magnus, emotions fly high between them and an abnormal is loose over the egyptian deserts. Will Helen solve her greatest mission yet?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer- I do not own any characters though i would love to.

Heels clicking on the wooden floor, Helen quickly makes her way down the hallway towards the front door of the sanctuary. She lightly grazes her shoulder on the wall as she rounds the corner and then stops. She hears his voice echo between the walls.

"Where is she?" He yells and she internally cringes.

_Why __did __I __do __it? __Why?  
><em>  
>Taking a breath, calming her temper and steadying herself for a brutal yelling, she moves on. Her heels begin to click again and her loose shirt sways around her hips as she strides towards the stair case. Helen stops again, and steps down the first step.<p>

"Nikola, what a pleasant surprise" She smiles and looks at Big guy, signalling it's alright for him to leave.  
>As Big guy leaves, a few grunts aimed at Nikola as he hisses at him, Helen casually walks down the rest of the stair case.<p>

"What can I do for you?" She asks as she reaches the last step, keeping a fair distance between her and the raging vampire in front of her.

He rolls his head and blinks his golden swirled eyes. "You can start by staying away from my plans and the people funding my research!" He fly's forward, grabbing hold of Helens neck and pinning her up against the wall.

"Nikola! Unhand me this instant!" She grabs at his wrists as they squeeze tighter at her throat.

"As long as you think you have control over what I do in this world, I will never let you live without suffering." He hisses in her face. He opens his mouth wide, his fangs protruding from his altered jaw and leans back, ready to strike. Just as he leans into her neck, his hand brought back too quickly for her to act, a large hand grips him by the shoulder.

Nikola fly's back, Helen falling forward to the ground. He crashes against the stair case railing, Henry in HAP mode standing over him growling through gritted teeth. Nikola launches forward, jumping at Henry who whacks him with a strong back hand. Nikola lands back on the floor and springs back up.

"That's enough!" Helen stands between them, a hand held out at each, palms facing them. Henry growls and Nikola hisses. "Both of you! Stop it right now."

Henry forms back, his fur disappearing from his shrinking body. As he calms down, taking deep breathes; he opens his mouth to speak.

"Leave Henry, I can handle it from here thank-you" Helen commands, giving him a reassuring look.  
>He begins to protest but stops and nods silently. As he walks away he stops beside Nikola and growls "Watch yourself."<p>

"Is that a threat?" Nikola mocks.

When henry leaves, only wearing his pants, his torso bare, Helen speaks.  
>"Nikola, you come into my home and you attack me. What is it that you want?" She steps towards him, her anger fuming. She knows what she did to him, stoping his research, his plans, but it was something she had to do.<p>

"You have ruined me! What did you expect me to do? To come here and act like nothing had happened, that you didn't ruin my chance at creating something that has never been thought of by the mere simple human? You will pay for this!" He rages, standing in front of her, his face in hers.

"I did what was best, for all of us."

"Ha! Of course, best for everyone? Best for your precious Sanctuary don't you mean?" Nikola's breath stings at Helens skin with its warmth as they stand for a moment.

Silence surrounds them, the small sound of their breathing echo off the high walls. As Helen speaks, Nikola slowly calms down. His fangs and claws retract, and his eyes turn back to there original state. "They were going to kill you Nikola, I had no choice. Once they were done with you they were going to get rid, you wouldn't have had a chance. "

"Wouldn't have had a chance? No-one can kill me" He turns around and cradles his head in his hand, his other hand on his hip.

"Nikola, you know better than me that their technology has advanced more as of late, they have the capability. If anything, they could have experimented on you. You know what they have been doing." Helen pleads with him and he slowly turns towards her. "If anything, I've damaged myself. You have been my only source of information on that facility."

"I will never forgive you." He whispers, just before they hear footsteps coming down the stair case.

"Magnus-"Will stops short, his sight shifting to Nikola. "What are you doing here?"

"Will what is it?" Helen looks up at him, attracting his attention.

"There's a problem, in Egypt. An abnormal is flying around, they don't know what it is, but it seems that there are a few hunters after it." Will stands on the steps waiting for her to move and waiting for Nikola to act.

After a few moments, Helen looking over at Nikola, their eyes connecting, Helen speaks. "Go get the others, be ready to go in an hour, I'll organise a plane."

Will nods but doesn't move, he stares down at Nikola. "What about him?"

"Leave Will, get the others."

_Please __just __leave.  
><em>  
>When Will finally leaves his stomping feet fading away down the hall, Helen speaks again. "I know, I don't expect you to, not for that." She steps over to him, reaching for his chin and turning him to face her.<p>

He looks down at her, hating the sight of her but at the same cherishing the closeness of her. He can hear her heart beat softly, and as he stares into her eyes, he can see the sorrow that fills the bright blue orbs.

"I just hope that we have been friends long enough to push it aside and not let it ruin what we do have. Can we?" her soft lips move, her voice poetry to his ears.

As hard as he tries, the sheer thought of letting her forget his pain is agony. His words rip at his heart. "I don't know if we could ever go back and I don't know if I could push it aside Helen."

She looks away, her eyes filling with unshed tear, watering at their corners. "Fine." She steps back and turns towards the stair case. Her heels click once more as she heads up the stairs. "Nikola, you're welcome to stay." She adds as an afterthought before disappearing down the hallway. Helen allows herself to be absorbed in the new mission, abnormal possibilities running through her mind.

A/N - please review if you would like me to continue.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N - sorry for the wait, needed a source of internet. Here it is.

"They came across here; they're tracking it from the west." A scruffy older man states to Helen as they both look at the disappearing blood staining the sand.

They arrived in Egypt a day ago, waiting for the sand storm to subside before heading out alone. The guide that took them to the sandy dunes of the desert happened to be a tracker and had heard of the hunters they were looking for. He had overheard them speaking of a creature they would only find in the desert and when he heard Helen was searching for a group of unusual men venturing into the desert, Paub offered his assistance.

"Thank-you very much, we'll take it from here if you don't mind." Helen looks up at the sun and to the horizon before standing and signalling for henry and Will to take the horses.

"Are you positive that's where they're heading?" Helen questions once more to the older tracker.

His eyes droop at the corners above the scarf wrapped around his mouth and tied at the base of his head. Skin filled with wrinkles and creases from a life of work, she could tell he was smiling at her constant questioning. "Yes, I'm sure" His English is fluent; it was a welcome change to her previous visits with Will where she had to constantly translate.

"Fair enough, we'll be heading off." Will hands her the reigns to the horse as the older man backs off and slings himself over his own horse. As he gallops away, disappearing over the sandy dunes of the desert, Helen feels a sudden gush of wind passing her.

She looks around, Will and Henry seeming to not notice any difference and she shakes it off. As she steps up to sling herself over her own horse she feels it again. She stops. Reaching for her gun hooked onto her belt she turns around slowly.

"Magnus? What's wrong?" Will's concern becoming apparent as he slowly scans the area, asking her but not looking at her directly.

"I'm not sure Will, but something isn't right here." Helen scans the area.

Hearing a sound from behind her she whips around and aims her gun at the direction of the sound. The penny drops as she is overcome with a mixture of anger and relief.

"Hello Helen." Nikola smiles cheekily.

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" She drops her gun to her side and places it back on her belt before turning away from him and slinging herself over the horse.

"You didn't think that I would actually stay at the Sanctuary of yours while you go off gallivanting across the Egyptian desert trying to save the world once again, did you?"

"I didn't say you had to Nikola, I said you were welcome to stay if you wished. I did not however want you to be following us while we are working. This is a delicate situation Nikola." Helen signals with a nod for Will and Henry to head off, Helen following close behind.

Nikola suddenly appears in front of her startling the horse. "Nikola! Back away and go home."

"No Helen, you owe me. I'm coming with you."

Helen looks away, her mind swarming. Her thoughts go back a month before hand and then to the other day. He was right; she did owe him for all she had done to him. But why did he want to help them on a mission like this?

"I don't understand Nikola. Why do you want to assist?" Helen looks down at him, the sun shining on his gelled hair, and she suddenly notices his appearance.

He wears a long jacket, a trench coat down to his ankles and as he stands in front of her, his lips pierced in a thoughtful stance; his jacket flies open to reveal a tie tucked into a tight black vest and long black suit trousers. Nikola was always fashionable, yet not always practical Helen thought to herself. His head tilts, looking upon her as though it were a challenge of who had more power than the other.

Helen sighs internally, predicting what's to be said from his stubborn mouth.

"I'm about to prove you wrong Helen, and may this not be the last time." He smiles, satisfied by the look she gives him.

In some way she's pleased, knowing his reference exactly, but in another way, she regrets the poisoned words that had come from her mouth a month ago. Had she the chance to take them back she would, if only it was to reverse the hurt she caused.  
>"Nikola you don 't-"<p>

"Have to?" Nikola cuts her off as he walks over to the horse, almost as if he were reading her thoughts from the very creases of her face to the dull shading of her eyes. He knew her line of thought. Inside he wanted her to pay, the idea of pain running through her excited him but deep inside, within his heart, he never wanted to her to be racked with such a feeling. To see Helen in that pain both pleased and broke him.

"If you must-"

"I must Helen, and there's not a thing you can do to stop me." He grabs the reigns oh her horse and she stares down at him.

She closes her eyes and arches her head back as he slings himself over onto her horse, his arms snaking around her waist. "And I suppose walking isn't an option?" she laughs, suddenly amused by his actions, feeling him smiling at her ear.

"Remember our expedition to King Tut? Now that was fun Helen you have to admit it." For a second, they're both back to their old ways until they remember the feelings they've felt as of late.

"Yes Nikola, they were good times." She smiles and then commands the horse to move, Nikola holding onto her waist tightly.

"We should stop here for the night. Get some rest everyone." After riding for hours with no sign of the hunters or the abnormal, they came across a structure half in rubble, left behind by the ancient ancestors of the desert.

"Well Helen it seems you've gotten sick of my company." Nikola smiles behind her, his hands still firmly on her stomach and his body still tight up against her back and tail bone.

"Nikola I can't move when you're like that." The sun has gone down and Will and Henry have dismounted from their horses, both looking over at Nikola and Helen with wary eyes.

"I know Helen." He whispers in her ear, keeping an eye on dumb and dumber.

"What do you want Nikola? An apology? A shouting match? Tell me so this doesn't have to go further." She says sternly but quietly, placing hands at her waist and griping his wrists. She pulls at them roughly, trying to release his grip but he won't have any of it.

"You know exactly what I want Helen, but you're too much of a selfish woman to let me have it." There is a hint of something in his voice that clenches itself around Helen's heart and refuses to let go and tears threaten to shed from her eyes.

"Nikola, I will not entertain these petty games of yours, no matter how much you try to coerce me into believing you love me," She snaps, angrier at herself for her sudden emotions than at Nikola, but she feels him pull away and dismount the horse. She takes a deep breath and steadies herself before doing the same.

Nikola tugs at her arm and forces her to face him. "You think this is a game, Helen? You think that my pinning after all these years has simply been to get into your pants, and then to leave you like dear old Johnny did?" Helen nods, noting the hurt and anger in his voice. He is silent for a moment, his eyes scanning her face. "Well then, apparently you aren't as good at reading people as you thought you were. At least now, I know where I stand."

And with that he turns and strides off into the night without looking back.

A/N - please review and tell me what you think. Hope you liked it.


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